The results of a study conducted by an international team of researchers on silver and lead production in the southeastern Iberian Peninsula during the first millennium BC challenge previous theories about the impact of the Phoenician commercial crisis of the 6th century BC on this important economic activity. The study, recently published in the Journal […]
Iberian Peninsula
Posted inBronze Age Archaeology
Researchers Question the Violent Invasion of the Iberian Peninsula During the Transition from the Copper Age to the Bronze Age
A recent study conducted by researchers from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB) and the University of Murcia (UM) challenges the prevailing idea that warrior groups with “steppe” ancestry from Eastern Europe violently replaced the male population in the Iberian Peninsula around 4,200 years ago. Instead, it proposes a more nuanced scenario in which these […]
Posted inMedieval Archaeology
A Violent Community Lived in Isolation for Five Centuries in Caves on the Border Between Al-Andalus and the Christian Kingdoms
Researchers from Sweden and Spain have conducted a comprehensive archaeogenetic study of a community that lived in isolation on the border between the Christian kingdoms of the north and Al-Andalus during the Early Medieval period. This dynamic era, especially in the Iberian Peninsula, was characterized by religious competition, power struggles, and significant human mobility, shaping […]
Posted inStone Age Archaeology
Neolithic Artisans of the Iberian Peninsula Created Beads That Simulated Amber
Researchers have revealed that the prehistoric communities of the Iberian Peninsula developed advanced technology to create beads that imitated amber, a precious and scarce material in antiquity. This finding, published in the Journal of Archaeological Science, highlights the skill and creativity of the Iberian artisans who managed to replicate the characteristics of amber using composite […]
Posted inStone Age Archaeology
Despite the Harsh Ecological Conditions, Modern Humans Occupied the Center of the Iberian Peninsula During the Upper Paleolithic
An international team of researchers, including the Institute of Archaeology of Mérida (IAM), the Archaeobotany Laboratory of the Institute of Heritage Sciences (INCIPIT-CSIC), and other institutions, has revealed new data on the settlement conditions of modern humans, known as Cro-Magnons, in the interior of the Iberian Peninsula during the Upper Paleolithic. The results of this […]
Posted inArchaeology
Copper Age Elites in Southern Iberian Peninsula Ritually Ingested Mercury, Poisoning an Entire Community
Nowadays, mercury is a cause for concern for health and environmental authorities in practically every country. Laws have been passed and programs implemented for its complete elimination from human activities. But it wasn’t always this way: mercury and its compounds have been highly prized and used since ancient times worldwide for various purposes ranging from […]